India, Australia to step up trade, investment flows

New Delhi, Mar 1 (UNI) India and Australia have agreed to substantially enhance bilateral trade and investment flows, while noting the increasingly diverse and substantial nature of the bilateral trade and economic relationship.

This is indicated in the agreed minutes of the 10th India-Australia Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) meeting, which was signed here last night by minister of commerce and Industry Kamal Nath and his counterpart Warren Truss, who is heading the largest-ever Australian business delegation to India.

Both the Ministers expressed satisfaction at the rapid escalation in bilateral goods and services trade between India and Australia and the significant increase in the commercial presence of Indian and Australian companies in each others markets.

Indo-Australian trade registered record increase from 1.4 billion US dollars in 2000-01 to 5.7 billion dollars in 2005-06. Of this, India's exports to Australia were valued at 0.8 billion dollars and Australia's exports to India were 4.9 billion dollars. More UNI